Canada Leads Major India Trade Mission to Expand Business Partnerships

Canada’s Minister for International Trade, Maninder Sidhu, will lead nearly 300 Canadian delegates to India from October 12 to 17 as Ottawa seeks to expand commercial partnerships and diversify trade beyond the United States.

Announcing the visit on Saturday, Sidhu said the Team Canada Trade Mission would include stops in Mumbai and Bengaluru. It will be Canada’s largest trade delegation to India in more than 30 years and its largest commercial engagement in the country in recent years.

The mission comes as Prime Minister Mark Carney’s Liberal government works to rebuild relations with India following diplomatic tensions during the administration of his predecessor, Justin Trudeau. Canada is also pursuing new trade partnerships amid uncertainty over the resumption of trade negotiations with the United States, its largest trading partner.

The delegation will include businesses from the aerospace and space, clean technology and energy transition, information and communication technology, life sciences, and agri-food sectors. Participants will meet Indian decision-makers, industry leaders, and prospective clients to explore commercial opportunities and develop partnerships.

The visit follows exchanges involving ministerial and business delegations from both countries. It will also support Sidhu’s efforts to strengthen bilateral trade, including ongoing work toward concluding a comprehensive economic partnership agreement by the end of the year.

“Nearly 300 Canadian business delegates are joining the Team Canada Trade Mission I am leading to India next week to secure new opportunities for our businesses and workers in one of the world’s fastest-growing markets. By matching Canadian expertise in sectors like aerospace, agri-food and clean technology with India’s growing demand, we will diversify our trade and attract new investment. This is how we will more than double our trade with India to $70 billion by 2030,” Sidhu said ahead of his departure.

Canada aims to double exports to markets beyond the United States over the next decade. Its bilateral trade target with India is $70 billion annually by 2030.

In 2025, two-way trade in goods and services between Canada and India totaled approximately $30 billion. Canadian merchandise exports to India included vegetables, mineral fuels and oils, and wood pulp. Imports from India primarily included precious stones and metals, machinery, and pharmaceutical products.

Canadian service exports to India were valued at approximately $15 billion in 2025, while service imports from India totaled about $4 billion. The latest available data, from 2024, identified education-related travel as the largest component of Canadian service exports to India.

Investment and employment ties also form a significant part of the relationship. In 2024, Indian multinational enterprises employed approximately 38,000 people through their Canadian affiliates, while Canadian multinational enterprises employed about 69,000 people through affiliates in India.

According to Export Development Canada, Canadian pension funds and asset managers reported approximately $108 billion in total exposure to India in 2025. This included portfolio holdings, direct investments, and other investment vehicles across multiple sectors of the Indian economy.

Canadian direct investment in India reached approximately $11 billion in 2025, concentrated in finance and insurance, utilities, and real estate rental and leasing. Indian foreign direct investment in Canada totaled approximately $10 billion, with leading sectors including finance and insurance; professional, scientific, and technical services; and transportation equipment and manufacturing.

The trade mission also aligns with Canada’s Indo-Pacific Strategy, launched in 2022. The strategy outlines five objectives covering security, trade, sustainability, people-to-people ties, and regional engagement, with an emphasis on inclusive growth and partnerships across the region.

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